Freelance science/technology journalist and author

November 30, 2017December 1, 2017

Would you let a company see your text messages to get a loan?

You might think that your text message and phone calls have no bearing on your financial future, but you could be wrong. Some companies are using their customers’ smartphone habits to decide whether or not they should be granted a loan, according to a report by campaign group Privacy International.

The report looked at the way tech-savvy loan companies work in India and Kenya, finding that they’re turning to increasingly intrusive sources of information to make decisions about their customers.